By Damien Lynch
Traffic gridlock in Sydney and Melbourne is driving motorists to distraction and has become hot issue for politicians in NSW and Victoria.
But for one fledgling company, which offers a small variation on the car hire theme, the situation presents an opportunity to rev up its business.
Sydney-based Charter Drive will accelerate its growth plans on a couple of fronts in the coming weeks.
It will more than double its fleet, move into Melbourne and, together with smart Pilots, a mobile advertising and communications agency, introduce a branded smart car service to complement its premium and unbranded Mercedes service.
The incentives for its CBD customers include getting the use of a car for an hour or a day at a competitive rate – and not having to worry about finding a parking space. But it is a small player in an increasingly competitive market and its fleet won’t be easily accessible for everyone.
Smart Drivers, Charter Drive’s new branded service, will offer cars from $3 per hour or $13 for the night and 33c per kilometer, while the premium Charter Drive service will offer cars for $10 per hour or $25 per night and 20c per kilometer, capped at $70 for the whole day. These prices include the cost of fuel.
Fuel cards are in the hire cars and charged to Charter Drive .Prices also include comprehensive insurance and parking.
Charter Drive chief executive Paul Reichman said that the aim was to “provide a more sustainable, flexible and economical private transport solution for inner-city businesses, residents and workers”.
He said clients would not be encumbered by long-term, inflexible leases, exorbitant parking costs or fringe benefit tax issues. The company has 10 vehicles operating in Sydney, but will extend its fleet by up to 25 cars in the next three months. Its expansion into Melbourne, where it plans to have an initial eight vehicles, is tied to this strategy.
Charter Drive has a partnership with Daimler-Chrysler to supply vehicles. Users look up the company’s website to see where they can hire a vehicle.
Regular users are encouraged to become members. Membership fees for businesses are paid monthly and $100 covers up to five drivers. The cost is $20 per additional driver.
Business membership fees for Smart Drivers are $20 per week for up to five drivers and $40 per week for up to 10 drivers. Companies that want to sign up more than 10 employees as members can negotiate a membership structure.
Charter Drive was incorporated in February 2005 and began operating in September of that year. It has three major shareholders, including Reichman who controls 50 percent of the Company. A Swiss company called Maecom has a 20 percent stake. The third shareholder has had other business dealings with Maecom.
Charter Drive employs three full-time staff, and uses contractors for cleaning and vehicle inspections. It did not provide any revenue figures.